Yes, that's in Massachusetts

 On Friday, arguments in the U.S. District of Massachusetts were heard in two cases against the federal government regarding the gutting of the U.S. Department of Education: 21 states suing, and the AFT case in which Somerville and Easthampton are plaintiffs before Judge Myong J. Joun. EdWeek has a good piece on it which also capture two exchanges I thought entertaining: 

Judge Myong J. Joun from the U.S. District Court of Massachusetts pressed Trump administration lawyers on what the president has meant when he’s spoken in recent months about “returning education to the states”; putting Education Secretary Linda McMahon “out of a job”; and closing the Education Department “to the maximum extent appropriate and permitted by law” without congressional action, as written in an executive order Trump signed in March.

“It’s kind of like when my kids were teenagers, they would throw a party at the house,” Joun said. “They might say, ‘To the extent that my parents give me permission to, I’m throwing this party.’ It doesn’t excuse having thrown the party.”

And also: 

Joun didn’t preview his ruling or indicate whether he believes the fired employees ought to be able to return to work.

He did, however, contest the administration’s position that the plaintiffs leading the lawsuits don’t have standing in the case because they’re trying to intervene in personnel matters outside their jurisdiction. To illustrate the point, he described his morning routine of ordering coffee from two workers at his local Dunkin’.

“I don’t think that these plaintiffs are saying, if one morning there’s no one there, that Dunkin’ Donuts should hire these two employees back,” Joun said. “I think what they’re saying is they want the cup of coffee.”

Judge Joun, who was also the judge who temporarily froze the ending of the teacher grants (the case that was 5-4 at the Supreme Court), has an intriguing personal story.